There are two ways to meet the Amalfi Coast. The first is by ferry — you round a headland and Positano spills down a cliff like a watercolour someone forgot to dry. The second is by bus along the SS163 Amalfi Drive, where the driver hugs a guardrail that ends in air, and you grip the seat in front of you for forty minutes. We strongly recommend the ferry. Five days is enough to do this coast properly if you stop trying to do all of it.
The Big Decision: Base in Positano or Sorrento?
This is the question every Amalfi itinerary lives or dies by. Both towns are gorgeous; they solve different problems.
| Positano | Sorrento | |
|---|---|---|
| Vibe | Cliffside village, vertical, dreamy | Bustling small city, flatter, working |
| Price | Premium (hotels often 350+ EUR shoulder) | Moderate (150–250 EUR shoulder) |
| Stairs | Many. Hundreds. Daily. | Almost none |
| Ferry hub | Yes (seasonal) | Yes (year-round to Capri + Naples) |
| Best for | Honeymoons, photography, short stays | Families, longer stays, budget, mobility |
| Drawback | Logistics + cost + crowds at the marina | Not technically on the Amalfi Coast |
Our take: if you can swing it, base in Positano for the first two nights (the views are non-negotiable) and shift to Sorrento for the final three (cheaper, easier ferry connections, better dinner options). If you want one base for simplicity, choose Sorrento.
Day 1: Arrival + Positano Slow Walk
Fly into Naples (NAP). From the airport, the easiest path is the Curreri bus direct to Sorrento (around 10 EUR, ~75 minutes), then a seasonal ferry from Sorrento to Positano. If you’re starting in Positano, skip the bus and take the ferry the whole way — arriving by sea is the right first impression.
Drop bags. Walk down Via Cristoforo Colombo to Spiaggia Grande. Don’t try to “do” anything today. Eat granita di limone. Watch the 6pm light hit the duomo’s majolica dome. Dinner at Da Vincenzo if you booked ahead, or C’era Una Volta for pizza without the marina markup.
Day 2: Path of the Gods Hike
The Sentiero degli Dei is the one walk that makes the coast click. The classic route runs from Bomerano (Agerola) down to Nocelle, about 7 km of mostly-downhill cliffside trail — roughly three hours with stops, longer if you’re stopping for photos every two minutes (you will).
Logistics:
- Take the SITA bus from Amalfi up to Bomerano around 8:30am .
- Hike to Nocelle. From Nocelle, you have a choice: 1,700 stone steps down to Positano, or a short local bus to Positano’s high road and a much shorter staircase.
- Wear actual trail shoes. The trail is well-marked but uneven, and there’s no railing where the drop is most photogenic.
Back in Positano by 3pm, swim, nap, and have dinner up the hill at Il Ritrovo in Montepertuso if you want a view that isn’t priced like the marina.
Day 3: Amalfi Town + Ravello (Villa Cimbrone)
Ferry from Positano to Amalfi (around 20 minutes ). Amalfi the town is smaller than its reputation — the Duomo of Sant’Andrea, the paper museum, a pebble beach. Two hours is plenty.
From Amalfi, take the SITA bus up to Ravello (about 25 minutes ). Ravello is the quiet answer to everything loud on the coast: a hilltop town at 365 m elevation, two extraordinary villas, and the Ravello Festival in summer. Walk to Villa Cimbrone, pay the entry fee, and find the Terrace of Infinity. It is the single best view on this coast, and you almost certainly will not have to share it.
Eat lunch in Ravello (it’s cheaper than down the hill). Catch a late-afternoon bus back to Amalfi, then the ferry home before sunset.
Day 4: Capri Day-Trip (Faraglioni, Anacapri, Blue Grotto Math)
Capri rewards an early start and punishes anyone who shows up at 11am.
Plan:
- Take the first fast ferry of the morning from Sorrento or Positano (around 7:50–9:00am ; Sorrento has more frequent service).
- Land at Marina Grande. Skip the immediate funicular queue and walk left along the harbour to a small boat tour booth — a one-hour round-the-island boat trip is the right way to see the Faraglioni rocks and the sea caves.
- After the boat, take the bus up to Anacapri (the quieter, higher town). Lunch in Anacapri is half the price of lunch in Capri Town.
- Chairlift to Monte Solaro for the panorama. Walk down through Cetrella for a quieter return.
Blue Grotto math. The Grotto is genuinely beautiful and genuinely a logistical mess. You pay for a boat tour to reach it, then pay again to transfer into a rowboat at the entrance, then queue, then get rowed inside for about three minutes. Total cost: around 30 EUR per person. Total time: often 90+ minutes of waiting. Our call: if it’s your first time and the swell is calm, do it. If it’s choppy, the entrance closes and you’ve wasted a morning — check sea conditions the night before.
Last ferry back to your base: typically around 7pm in summer, earlier shoulder . Do not miss it. Capri hotels are not affordable.
Day 5: Sorrento + Departure
Sleep in. Sorrento isn’t technically on the Amalfi Coast (it sits on the other side of the peninsula, facing the Bay of Naples), but it’s the gentle landing pad on the way out.
Walk the Villa Comunale gardens at the cliff edge. Browse the citrus shops along Via San Cesareo. Lunch at Inn Bufalito for mozzarella that hasn’t seen the inside of a refrigerator. From Sorrento it’s a 75-minute Curreri bus or a Campania Express train back to Naples airport or central station.
Ferry Schedules & Money
The coast runs on two ferry operators: Travelmar (Positano–Amalfi–Salerno, the workhorse intra-coast line) and Alilauro / NLG (longer routes to Capri and Naples). Schedules are seasonal — most lines run April through October, with the densest service in June, July, and August. Always check the day before; rough seas cancel runs without much warning.
Cash + cards: tap-to-pay is universal in towns. Smaller trattorias up the hills sometimes prefer cash. ATMs in Positano dispense, but the queue at 6pm is real.
💱 1USD ≈ 0.87EUR
FAQs
Is the Blue Grotto worth the wait?
Once, on a calm day. The colour is genuinely otherworldly — a hard cobalt blue from light refracting under the cave’s underwater entrance. But the total experience is around three minutes inside the cave after potentially 90 minutes of queueing and two layers of boat fees. If conditions are perfect and you’ve never seen it, yes. If the sea is choppy or you’ve been before, skip it and spend the time in Anacapri.
Should I rent a car on the Amalfi Coast?
No. The SS163 has limited parking (often paid, often booked out by hotels), the towns are pedestrian-cored, and the bus + ferry network connects everything you’d actually want to visit. A car is useful only if you’re staying inland in Agerola or doing Paestum + Cilento on the same trip. Otherwise it’s a 200-euro stress object.
What’s the best month to visit?
Late May, early June, and mid-September. July and August are hot, crowded, and priced for honeymoons. April and October work but ferry frequency drops and some restaurants close. The shoulder weeks at either end of summer are the sweet spot — warm sea, half the crowds, full ferry schedule.
Are Positano hotels really that expensive?
Yes, particularly in peak season. Expect 400–800 EUR per night for a sea-view room in July. Shoulder season drops this 30–40%. The workaround is to base in Praiano (next village over, ferry connected, half the price) or Sorrento, and ferry in to Positano for day visits.
Sources
- Italia.it — Amalfi Coast
- Travelmar ferry schedules
- Alilauro ferry schedules
- Wikivoyage — Amalfi Coast
- UNESCO World Heritage — Costiera Amalfitana
- Capri.com — Blue Grotto info
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Reviewed by Traveloonie Team, last updated 2026-05-31.